Looking for my First E Bike

[MidnightMinstrel]

I am looking to purchase very soon ( in the next week or so) my first E Bike, this is more out of necessity more than pleasure. Following an unexpected Stroke early April last year , I still have a bit of a weak right side and so I am looking for an E Bike that will help me get around at work better and quicker and get me there and home ( normally a good 10 to fifteen minute walk each way) I dont need anything flashy or mega expensive ( on a budget of about £600 ) I just need something that will not need a great deal of hard peddling or effort to make it work for me ( its not a work out I am after ) due to a weaker right leg, especially since its also a bit hilly on the way home, but I need it mostly to get around my work site which is huge and I am not up to all the walking anymore. I have seen many E bikes for sale and I am thinking of a folding 20inch wheel one which would be more practable for me. But I have no idea what I should look for or dismiss, I never knew there were different types of drive hub..crank etc..some pedal assist some a mixture of Throttle and gear assist. I have norrowed down a few, including a couple called E Life on 'IdealWorld' of all places , and a similar one on Proridemobility website ( slightly above my budget though) Given my needs , what should I be looking for as far as the motor drive etc. Can anyone advice me on this?

 

[keithmac]

Have a look on here, spend a few hours reading up and maybe post the question on there as well.

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/

 

[keithmac]

Also what total mileage per day and what terrain (flat/ moderate or steep hills?).

Youd be looking for a hub drive if you want a folder, don't go for less than 36v battery and 10ah+.

 

[Pale Rider]

Crank drives are above your budget, so you can dismiss them.

That leaves you with a hub drive, not a problem, they work perfectly well.

A legal ebike in the UK can now only have a start assist throttle.

It does what it says on the tin, works up to about walking pace to enable you to balance the bike and get going.

Presumably the commute is short as you can walk it in 15 minutes.

This means any ebike will do a few return journeys without having to recharge the battery.

Pedal assist control on budget ebikes is simple, turning the pedals activates the motor.

That will also work fine for your purpose.

A problem with your relatively low budget is the quality of the bike.

The cheaper Chinese bikes are much of a muchness, many come from the same factories and are sold in the UK with different company stickers on them.

They are not the best quality so may not be reliable - not very handy when you rely on the bike to get to work.

Buying from a local retailer is wise because you will have somewhere to take the bike to sort problems.

 

[cakeface]

Hi minstrel sorry to read about your health problem. I can't offer any advice on which bike to buy but is your company part of the government Cycle to Work scheme? It may allow you to look at something of better quality for the same outlay. I'm assuming you are based in the UK. Good luck with whatever you choose.

 

[welsh dragon]

I wouldn't buy anything like that from ideal world to be honest. No lighter than other ebikes, and the mileage you can expect is far from great. If they say 25 mile range, then you probably won't get that much.

You have to narrow down what you want to be honest. Are you competent or willing to do maintainance on the bike? If you want somethimg simple to look after, with little maintainance, have a look at a second hand Gtech. You can pick one up on ebay for around £650.00. I know it isn't a folder, but is it set in stone that you need a folder?

It has a simple carbon belt, no gears so maintainance will be easy.

Do you live in a hilly area? Are you going to use the bike for anything else other than riding to work. You should make a list of what exactly you think you might need, and go from there.

And remember, you get what you pay for. If you don't spend enough, you could regret it fairly quickly. Good luck.

 

[Pale Rider]

I wouldn't buy anything like that from ideal world to be honest. No lighter than other ebikes, and the mileage you can expect is far from great. If they say 25 mile range, then you probably won't get that much.

You have to narrow down what you want to be honest. Are you competent or willing to do maintainance on the bike? If you want somethimg simple to look after, with little maintainance, have a look at a second hand Gtech. You can pick one up on ebay for around £650.00. I know it isn't a folder, but is it set in stone that you need a folder?

It has a simple carbon belt, no gears so maintainance will be easy.

Do you live in a hilly area? Are you going to use the bike for anything else other than riding to work. You should make a list of what exactly you think you might need, and go from there.

And remember, you get what you pay for. If you don't spend enough, you could regret it fairly quickly. Good luck.

The Gtech is a good thought.

Small battery, but that wouldn't matter for a short commute and may be a benefit because it makes the bike light - for an ebike.

If the OP can stretch the budget via Cycle to Work or some other means, this Ebco folder at £849 would be a reasonable choice.

I've ridden a couple of Ebco bikes and they are better quality than the Chinese cheapies.

https://www.rutlandcycling.com/3642...currency=GBP&gclid=CMjOgMq0x9ECFW0o0woduVgPUg

 

[keithmac]

He says he has to ride it round his huge work site as well..

Gtech will do 30 miles on a charge on the flat, just depends on the hills?.

You have to push the pedals round 1/4 turn to set the motor off though so as someone mentioned above a thumb throttle equipped bike maybe the best bet?.

I do 6 miles a day on my Gtech, other than charging the battery I don't need to touch anything else ( Carbon Drive is built for winter commuting!).

 

[MidnightMinstrel]

Have a look on here, spend a few hours reading up and maybe post the question on there as well.

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/

Thanks...Ive just tried joining that forum...several times..nightmare, keeps coming back with some message about answering all the fields at registration, even though I had...I gave up in the end

 

[MidnightMinstrel]

Hi minstrel sorry to read about your health problem. I can't offer any advice on which bike to buy but is your company part of the government Cycle to Work scheme? It may allow you to look at something of better quality for the same outlay. I'm assuming you are based in the UK. Good luck with whatever you choose.

That would have been a great..but unfortunately they dont...and alas..as I technically almost live on site being about 10 min walk away I wouldnt qualify I dont think, but many thanks for your input.

 

[MidnightMinstrel]

He says he has to ride it round his huge work site as well..

Gtech will do 30 miles on a charge on the flat, just depends on the hills?.

You have to push the pedals round 1/4 turn to set the motor off though so as someone mentioned above a thumb throttle equipped bike maybe the best bet?.

I do 6 miles a day on my Gtech, other than charging the battery I don't need to touch anything else ( Carbon Drive is built for winter commuting!).

I did look at the Gtech..nice looking bike, but out of my price range tbh..but thanks for your input Keithmac.

 

[MidnightMinstrel]

The Gtech is a good thought.

Small battery, but that wouldn't matter for a short commute and may be a benefit because it makes the bike light - for an ebike.

If the OP can stretch the budget via Cycle to Work or some other means, this Ebco folder at £849 would be a reasonable choice.

I've ridden a couple of Ebco bikes and they are better quality than the Chinese cheapies.

https://www.rutlandcycling.com/3642...currency=GBP&gclid=CMjOgMq0x9ECFW0o0woduVgPUg

That is a great Bike...and if it was only a couple of £100 cheaper it would be perfect...but 8 months on half pay can make a dent in your funds..budget is about £600 max ...but many thanks for the link.

 

[MidnightMinstrel]

http://www.proriderleisure.com/Leisure/electric-bikes/um30-elite-electric-hybrid-bike.html

A bit of a stretch on my budget ( well a large one tbh) ...but has anyone on here come across one of these E bikes before ?

 

[Pale Rider]

http://www.proriderleisure.com/Leisure/electric-bikes/um30-elite-electric-hybrid-bike.html

A bit of a stretch on my budget ( well a large one tbh) ...but has anyone on here come across one of these E bikes before ?

On the plus side, ProRider and Urban Mover are brands that have been around for a while.

I would worry about the quality, the cheap Chinese bikes are no longer dreadful, but they do tend to suffer from niggly faults, particularly electrical.

They can need a fair bit of setting up, stuff like tensioning the spokes, fettling the brakes and so on.

That's where a local bike shop comes in handy, a competent mechanic could turn a badly put together Prorider into a half-decent ebike in less than an hour.

You certainly won't do significantly better for the budget.

 

[MidnightMinstrel]

They're Chinese? ??...the sods claimed they were British !